Combined letter box and changeable sign



W. W. CHRISTIAN ET AL COMBINED LETTER BOX AND CHANGEABLE SIGN Filed Sent.

May 15, 1923.

Mmter M C/zrzz's tiara flag 22s tus 61. Morey Patented May 15, 1923.

WINTER' W. CHRISTIAN AND AUGUSTUS G.

COMBINED LETTER BOX Application filed September To all whom it may concern: v f

' Be it known that we, WINTER W. CHRIs- TIAN and AUGUSTUS G. MAXEY, citizens of the United. States, residing at Owensboro, in the county of Daviess and State of Kentucky, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Combined Letter- Boxes and Changeable Signs, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates to house letter boxes and has for its object the provision of a cheap and'eflicient durable receptacle hav} ing associated therewith means whereby the householder may display announcements whereby passers-by may be given certain information. The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings and will be hereinafter fully set forth.

In the drawings- Figure 1 is a perspective view of a device embodying our invention;

Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse section of the same;

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section on the line 33 of Fig. 2.

In carrying out our invention, we employ a back plate 1 which will preferably be of sheet metal and is provided at its upper and lower ends with openings 2 through which suitable fastening devices may be inserted to secure the device to a fixed support. The side edges of the back plate are doubled upon themselves to form re-entrant flanges 3 andrthe side plates 4: of the device have their rear side edges bent outwardly, as shown at 5, presenting flanges which are adapted to engage within the re-entrant flanges 8 whereby the side plates will be held to the back plate, and to prevent dropping of the side plates, the lower end of the flanges 3 are crimped, as indicated at 6, whereby they will be closed and will present shoulders upon which the lower ends of the flanges 5 may rest. The front side edges of the side plates are bent outwardly, as shown at 7, and these outwardly bent flanges are engaged within the re-entrant flanges 8 formed at the longitudinal side edges of the front plate 9. The front plate is provided with an opening 10 therethrough, and at a convenient distance above the said opening,

a stop flange 11 is secured upon the back of the front plate, the said stop flange being adapted to bear upon the upper face of a division plate 12 which is fitted between the MAXEY, on owENsBono, KENTUCKY; SAID cnnrsrmn ASSIGNOR rosAIn MAXEY. v

AND cHANeEABLn SIGN.

14., 1921. Serial no. 500,537.. I V

sideplatesandhas itsends turned down wardly at a right angle to provide flanges 13 'riveted or otherwise rigidlysecured to the sa d sldeplates. The division plate 12 constitutes the bottom of the mail box andfalso I serves as a connecting brace to preventcoL lapse of the structure. ,Asimilar plate 14 is fittedbetween the side plates land be:

tween the lower endof (the front plate 9and the back plate, asshown clearly in Fig. 2,

same manner as the division'plate 12'is secured'thereto. The space defined by the .6 and is secured to the said side plates in the front plate, the back plate and the upper and 1 lower plates 12 -and 14 constitute a th m.

her to house a shiftable exhibitor consisting of an endless apron or belt 15 carried'by rollers 16 andv so located that announcements painted, printed, or'otherwise placed upon of glass or other transparent material, in- I l dicated at '17, and supported by a rim or flange 18 secured in any convenient manner upon the back of the front plate. The rollers 16 are equipped at their ends with pins 19 which may be engaged in slots or notches 20 formed in the side plates 4: and preferably inclined-in opposite directionsso that the tendency of the rollersto seek the lower ends of the respective slots or notches will serve to maintain the displa belt in a taut'con: dition. The upperrol er 16 has a knob or handle 21 fitted upon one of its journal pins exteriorly of the adjacent side plate so that by rotatin the said knob, the belt may be shifted to %ring any desired announcement into alinement with the display opening 10. In the drawings, we have illustrated the device as displaying the announcement No rooms, thereby indicating that the householder cannot accommodate any additiona-l tenants. It will be understood that various announcements may be placed upon the display belt and any desired announcements easily brou ht into position to be read through the display opening by manipulathe householder or owner of the box may be appropriately displayed upon the front plate 9, as will be readily understood. To protect mail against the Weather elements, a cover 22 is provided and this cover, as well as all the otherv parts of the device, may be and preferably will be of sheet metal. Flanges 23 are formed at the end edges of the cover and along the front edge thereof todepend over the upper end of the mail box so that rain and snow cannot readily obtain access to the mail. The cover is mounted upon the back plate by a hinge 24 so that it may be easily raised when mail is to be placed in or taken from the mail box.

It will be readily seen from the foregoing description, taken in connection with the accompanyingdrawings, that we have provided a very simple, inexpensive and durable device which will facilitate the delivery of mail and will enable a householder to display desired "announcements. The device may be manufactured at a very low cost and may be shipped in a knocked down position so that large quantities may be transported Within a'small space, and the device may be readily set up in position for use by an unskilled person.

Having thus described the invention, What is claimed as new is:

A device for the purpose set forth comprising a back plate adapted to be secured to a lined'support and having ire-entrant flanges along its longitudinal side edges, the

lower ends ofsaid flanges being closed, side plates provided at their rear side edges with outstanding flanges' to' engage in the re-entrant flanges of the back plate whereby the side plates will be supported by the closed lower ends of said 're-entrant flanges, "outstanding flanges at the front longitudinal edges of the side plates, a front plate having re-entrant flanges engaging the'outstanding flanges at the front edgesvof the side plates, a division plate secured rigidly to and extending between the side plates, and a stop flange .on the rear face of the front plate adapted to bear upon'saiddivision plate whereby to support thefr'o'nt plate. 7

In testimony whereofwe afiiX our 'signa tures. t v

WINTER W. CHRISTIAN. [L.s'.] AUGUSTUS G. MAXEY. [L1 s.] 

